Jeffrey Sachs, professor of political economy at Columbia University, said that “Israel’s actions in the Gaza Strip are war crimes,” and that the continued bombing and permanent siege may cause tens of thousands of innocent victims.
Sachs added – in exclusive statements to Tel Aviv Tribune Net – that Israel cannot achieve security through war, but rather through a settlement that guarantees the political rights of the Palestinian people, as part of a comprehensive and just political solution.
Sachs was selected twice on Time magazine’s list of the 100 most influential people in the world, and he has several books, three of which were best-sellers according to the New York Times. Last year, he also won the Tang Prize for Sustainable Development.
Reasons for military failure
The political economy professor believes that failure will be the fate of the military operations launched by Israel in the Gaza Strip, and he attributed this to three reasons:
- Military reasonas Israel will face great difficulties in the urban warfare in Gaza, and will lose large numbers of its forces, which will put political and humanitarian pressure inside Israel to adopt a strategy based on political action instead of military force.
- Geopolitical reason“The world will increasingly demand that Israel stop its massacre,” and the political pressures imposed on it will become more and more strong, both within United Nations organizations and elsewhere.
- Geostrategic reasonWhat is happening in Gaza today raises the possibility of prolonging the war and extending it to all parts of the Middle East, including attacks on American forces deployed in the region, and this would greatly increase the security risks to the entire world, including Israel.
Sachs said about the victory of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) in the 2006 elections that Israel should have opened diplomatic and political negotiations with Hamas without preconditions, and Israeli officials should have met with Hamas officials to reach an understanding aimed at a future of mutual peace.
Sachs, who serves as President of the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network, pointed out that peace must be reached with the Palestinian people, and this should be achieved with the recognition of the State of Palestine by the United Nations Security Council and the United Nations General Assembly, so that Palestine enjoys sovereignty over its lands, including That’s East Jerusalem. This does not relate to Hamas per se, but to Palestine.
America is not a mediator
The professor of political economy rejected America being a mediator in the peace negotiations between Palestine and Israel, because it is “an ally of Israel and this is clear,” but we need a global consensus on moving forward, and this consensus would hardly exist if it were not for the United States, Israel and a few countries that swim. Reverse the current.
Sachs is also currently director of the Center for Sustainable Development at Columbia University, and he said about American politicians, “They are strongly supportive of Israel, not only because of the Israeli lobby, but also because of American ideology.” “Moreover, the US military and intelligence services are strongly allied with Israel.”
At the conclusion of his statements, he called for movement towards a political solution that was delayed for 50 years, and called on “the international community to unite in order to achieve justice in this geographical area that includes two peoples.” He said, “The two-state solution is the necessary first step towards this path,” after “many Israeli human rights and political organizations considered the Israeli regime to be a regime based on apartheid.”